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When a Chronicle survey asked college employees what they value about their jobs, they put the physical environment in which they work at the top of the list. (Chronicle photograph of Washington & Lee U.)

Rise in Tornadoes, Floods Poses Risk to Colleges
What if the sort of extreme weather that has left the University of Iowa inundated in floodwaters is not a freak event? What if it is a sign of things to come? (Photograph by AP Images)

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Paul Rudolph's 1963 Brutalist icon is getting a makeover, plus an addition by Charles Gwathmey.

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Like swashbuckling movie heroes, facilities planners take on herculean tasks.

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About Buildings & Grounds

Buildings & Grounds is written by Scott Carlson (left) and Lawrence Biemiller (right). Scott Carlson writes about architecture, facilties, energy, and sustainability, among other topics. Lawrence Biemiller writes about architecture and facilities and contributes to Notes from Academe. What's happening on your campus? Let us know.

At Emory, Getting Students Out of Cars and On 2 Wheels

Atlanta — David Hanson describes himself as a cycling addict — a guy who owns a half-dozen road bikes, spends his spare time training for benefit rides, and dreams of one day opening a bike shop, where he can fiddle with bikes all day long. For now, he has a respectable if more staid position as the associate vice president for administration at Emory University — but with a recent project, he has managed to wrap his love for biking into his job.

A couple of years ago, Mr. Hanson wrote to a handful of major bike manufacturers in hopes of starting a partnership that would get more Emory students on pedals and out of their cars. Fuji, a bike company, responded right away, and Pat Cunnane, the president of Fuji made a trip to Emory to shoot pictures of the campus, look at bike culture in the area, and find out whether a bike program would be viable on campus. Atlanta, unlike New York City or Portland, Ore., isn’t exactly known for being a good biking town. In fact, it rates at the bottom of some lists of bike-friendly cities in biking magazines.

At least around Emory, Mr. Hanson, with the help of Fuji and a local bike shop, are trying to change that. They have set up a program under which students, professors, and staff members can buy Fuji bikes at deep discounts, with a helmet and a lock thrown in the deal. Fuji also provided a $50,000 grant that Emory could use to buy bikes and equipment for raffles and giveaways, to get buzz going about the biking program. (Walk around the campus, and you see banners and signs promoting the bike program everywhere.)

At the same time, the university is trying to rejigger infrastructure and policy to make biking more convenient and safe. Roads around the university are being re-striped for bike lanes, and the university is in the process of mapping out the safest routes to campus. All new buildings have showering and changing facilities as standard, but the university is also considering retrofitting existing buildings with locker rooms. There is also a campaign at the university to inform managers about the program and to tell them to be flexible about when employees show up, to allow time for the commute. Being flexible about office attire is also part of the campaign. (Some administrators have bought in completely. Michael Mandl, the executive vice president for finance and administration, now walks or bikes to work every day, having left his car at his second home in North Carolina for the summer.)

Incoming students get e-mail messages informing them about the bike program. The program started a little late in the admissions cycle last year, so only about 100 students bought bikes. Officials from Emory and Fuji expect the buy-in to be much higher this year — so high, in fact, that Fuji is designing a bike in “Emory blue” that students can buy through the program. Fuji will also manufacture up to 40 bike racks, at Emory’s design specifications, to be placed around campus.

Bicycle South, the bike shop associated with the program, is also pitching in by setting up a mobile repair facility that will visit the campus at two locations on two days of the week and offer services, for a fee. The ultimate goal, says Mr. Hanson, is to set up a permanent bike shop on campus. It’s not clear whether Mr. Hanson will give up his administrator’s job to work there. —Scott Carlson

Comments

1. I grew up near Emory. It all depends on where you’re trying to go from campus. It’s not just availability of bike lanes. The topography is a huge challenge. One of our neighbors had biked when he taught at Princeton, but had to give it up because of the hills between his house and Emory.

   — drj50    May 21, 04:51 PM    #

2. Decatur is indeed a hilly area and cycling up hills in normal street clothes (as opposed to cycling specific clothing) can be a workout. However, combining commuting and exercise is efficient use of one’s time. Institutions that provide shower facilities and lockers for employees who cycle-commute can alleviate parking problems and improve the environment and encourage a healthier lifestyle.

   — Mike    May 22, 10:16 AM    #

3. While I applaud Emory’s energetic and creative approach to promotion of bicycling, I trust the results of the program will be analyzed carefully. In a study I did as a graduate student at Cornell — another hilly neighborhood! — years ago, I concluded that interventions intended to make the campus more bike-friendly — bike paths on roads, parking facilities, et al. — were less likely to convert drivers than to turn pedestrians into bikers. In a survey of students, faculty, and staff, I found that most drivers to campus faced serious barriers to conversion — notably long commutes and adverse weather. Most likely to convert were dorm residents and those living on the campus fringe, i.e. those who were walking modest distances. As a bike enthusiast, I concluded sadly that the campus would be worse off by promoting bikes: walking paths made hazardous by speeding bikes and unsightly parking clusters near academic buildings and dorms.

   — Dan Updegrove    May 22, 10:16 AM    #

4. I’m an Emory biker. What converted me from my car was the combination of an increase in the on-campus parking fee—which got me to thinking— coupled with some simple incentives that were offered to ease the transition.

   What Emory seems to be doing right is offering a whole range of incentives, such that any one will have a chance of resonating with someone to the point they give it a trial.

   The hills and traffic were a challenge initially, but they were easier to get used than the biking habit. It was hard initially to not reach for the car keys thinking I had to hurry, or I’d have days where I just didn’t like the idea of arriving sweating and out of breath.

   Now, it is second nature. I’m so used to it, I even bike in the worst possible weather. I don’t have the impulse to drive any more. Good thing, too, given where gas prices are now.

   — me    May 22, 12:20 PM    #

5. After 3 years of biking or walking to EUH and/or the Clinic at 1525, I find the lack of locker room/shower faciities at EUH a major obstacle. The 20 minutes of hill cycling or 30 minutes of brisk paced walking expends energy, therefore perspiration, and ideally requiring a change of clothes at minimum before beginning work. For those of us without a private office/shower, it’s either a bird bath in the public restrooms (not a pretty sight!) or be offensive to co-workers. A place to store one’s cycling/walking clothing, i.e. a locker would make the routine less of a hassle. I enjoy this part of my day, as it is refreshing for a pre and post work routine. Not welcome is the clothing change dilemma. Perhaps one of the areas of focus (especially at EUH) during expansion planning should include a facility to accomodate the needs of exercising commuters. I can’t imagine this is a female only concern!

   — patti    May 23, 11:41 AM    #

6. I would tend to agree with some of the comments above, that is, bike lanes can be a marginal experience. what is needed most on emory’s campus are bike paths where automobiles are completely off limits.
   bike lanes tend to vanish where left turn lanes are made for cars, not to mention bike lanes are generally full of debris.

   finally, i would suggest why not go a step further and create an emory road biking / group ride / bike racing team in concert with fuji sponsor?!

   — John E Scharf    May 23, 06:38 PM    #

7. I agree with “me” above. When I began biking to Emory I was always looking for the excuse to pickup the car keys. Just like many habits however, biking eventually took hold, and now I look forward to the ride.
   Two obstacles can be quickly overcome:
   1. It is important to buy good rain gear as soon as you commit to peddling. Geared up on a rainy day, I arrive dryer than the folks walking from the parking deck. There is no smugness more satisfying than pointing that out ;-)
   2. Hills. One gets used to the hills of a regular commute pretty fast. My wife works a mile past the center of Emory and her commute includes a very challenging hill. She now dominates on hill climbs wherever we peddle.

   — Ted Pettus    Jun 11, 11:00 AM    #

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